avioding cliche's

[Gav]

perhaps this is because i myself have not really done very much writing in a long time, and will happily admit i am certainly un-practiced, but one of the difficulties that i am finding trying to start writing again is that alot of my ideas seem to very quickly fall into what i would class as a cliche. as an example, i am starting to work on a story set in what i guess would be classed as a medievil style period (think kings and nobles, swords and sorcery that kind of thing) and i seem to be having a hard time not creating characters or situations that havent been done to death in every other book/film/game already. for example the lowly thief who gains something and becomes the saviour, the good king who dies to start off a land wide conflict.

has it got to the stage where, because of the genre i am writing in has such a large saturation of content in so many different media style that i shouldnt worry too much, and instead concentrate on what makes my characters and story telling my style, OR is it still possible to find near unique situations and i just need to try to do some more research and test writing to find something new. Is it even somewhere between the two?

this isnt asking for feedback on my own writing, more just a question as to what your thoughts on the subject are.

 

[JCFarnham]

Well, both, I'd say.

By reading and reading and reading you'll have a good chance of knowing what's been done and can make informed decisions from there on. Its a well known idea that "everything has been done before", whether or not that's true the only thing you can do is read and try and create something that at least explores a well trodden path in a different way.

Anyway, even if individual ideas are "cliche" that doesn't mean the story is cliche. Asuming you've grown into "your style" you're almost certain to put those cliches together in a unique way. There is so much out there that to mix and match things from here and there in your own style you wouldn't necessarily have a cliche finished product.

Hmmm.

 

[grahamguitarman]

Everything is cliche in the sense that its probably been done before, what matters is that you write a story so well that the cliches become irrelevant.

 

[San Cidolfus]

Given that it's been so long since you've written, I wouldn't worry too much about writing something that may been seen as cliched. Right now you should concentrate on just writing, on flexing your literary muscles and slipping back into the medium. Once you write enough, you'll get a sense of where your style fits in the larger scheme of things. Then it's time to give a thought to whether or not a character or plot hook is overused.

That being said, the gentlemen above made very fine points. If you're comfortable with your writing and your narrative leads your reader down an enjoyable road, they won't be too concerned about whether or not they've read something before because they're enjoying themselves now. If you use your characters well and develop your narratives to be fluid and engaging, then that's all that matters.

 

[CL Mozena]

I agree that it is difficult not to fall into a cliche, but you shouldn't worry about it. When I write, no matter how hard I try to come up with something new, it seems like any part of my writing can be picked out an compared with a scene in another book or movie. But it's been written with my style, so it's mine and mine alone.

 

[Klee Shay]

Someone is avoiding me?

All of the above posts seem to agree. If you've done your job (telling an interesting story), no one will care if it's similar to someone else's story.

 

[Queshire]

Hm, not sure how on-topic this is, but one resource I like to use is TVtropes.org, Home Page - Television Tropes & Idioms it's a massive encyclopedia of various writing conventions and devices, there's a good chance of what you think of as cliches are listed there as tropes.

 

[sashamerideth]

Hm, not sure how on-topic this is, but one resource I like to use is TVtropes.org, Home Page - Television Tropes & Idioms it's a massive encyclopedia of various writing conventions and devices, there's a good chance of what you think of as cliches are listed there as tropes.

TVTROPES!!!!! Never go there without a two man rescue team on a timed standby. It is useful but makes everything seem like a trope. I have found a few tropes that I am using, like the genre savvy character, the one that knows he is in a fantasy story.